Accessories, part 5 of 6

Accessories
The modern shoe differs from the inspiration image in color but I cannot see enough of it to determine style. The V&A has a child’s shoe from 1400-1550 Image #2009CC5642-01 that is essentially a black mary-jane. As the SCA doesn’t require perfect reproductions and the boy outgrows shoes every 3 months, modern mimics are acceptable substitutes. I did not alter these shoes at all. A previous pair had an ugly black bow which I cut off, and little heart cut-outs, which I rounded with a leather punch. Modern shoes are fairly easy to change.
Please do not take the biggin off the doll. The doll is creepy without it, and it is only there for that reason. It is machine sewn; the doll’s head was too big for the hand sewn cap.
A biggin was a simple cap worn by small children closest to the head. Sometimes it was worn alone, sometimes under other caps and hats. In The Tudor Child it is described as “a close fitting linen cap, usually tied under the chin” (p. 24). The images in my file collection are mostly bare-headed boys, which may be because my son won’t wear a hat and I’ve subconsciously selected for that.
I took the pattern from Tudor Tailor last year and just sized it down to fit my child, who absolutely refuses to wear it. It is the same in The Tudor Child, just smaller. It is made from linen cotton blend with cotton twill tape ties, which would have been linen in period, but were used for this exact purpose. I dislike the look of it and if he ever starts liking hats I will make one with self-fabric ties.